What Parents and Teens Need to Know about the Meningitis B Vaccine

By: Grown and Flown

This post is sponsored by GSK but the opinions are my own. 

When my oldest son was in college there was an outbreak of meningitis B on his campus. Initially, I was worried but felt assured that he had been vaccinated as I closely followed his pediatrician’s recommendations and thought he would be fine. However, soon it became clear that he had been vaccinated for a different strain of meningitis, and the one that was sickening a few of his classmates was meningitis B, a strain for which, at that time, there was no vaccine yet in the United States. There is a safe and effective vaccine now. 

When my oldest son was in college there was an outbreak of meningitis B on his campus. (Twenty20 @AAS)

While the overall risk of contracting meningitis is low, college students have a higher risk than the general population because of their physical contact with each other, and spreading germs through sharing food and drink, coughing near each other or kissing. From 2011 through March 2019, meningitis B caused all US college meningococcal outbreaks, which involved 13 campuses, 50 cases, and tragically 2 deaths.  

While meningococcal meningitis is uncommon, it is very dangerous, progresses very quickly, and can be fatal. There is also a risk of long-term consequences such as loss of limbs, brain damage, deafness and nervous system problems. 

On my son’s campus the outbreak precipitated action by the CDC and they brought in a vaccine that was in use in Europe and vaccinated most of the student body.  After this event, meningitis B vaccines were approved for use in the US. However, recent CDC data show that only 17.2% of 17-year-olds have received a vaccine that helps protect against meningitis B, which causes approximately 30 percent of the cases in the US.  

The American Academy of Pediatrics and the CDC  urge parents to discuss meningitis and the vaccine with their physician.  Recent polling shows that only one in three parents know that two different types of vaccines are needed to help protect against meningitis – A, C, W, Y and B. Many parents, as I was,  are confused about the two different vaccines for meningitis, and so speaking to your child’s physician is the best way for you and your college student to learn more. 

As a result of the pandemic, some doctors’ visits were cancelled and teens and young adults may have missed or delayed a visit. It is crucial that our students see their doctor, discuss their vaccination schedule and learn more about the five vaccine-preventable groups of meningitis – A, C, W, Y and B – and all CDC-recommended vaccines young people need. 

Visit meningitisb.com for more information

Source: https://grownandflown.com/parents-and-teens-need-know-about-meningitis-b-vaccine/

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